Fusion
by Commando2341
Summary: Team RWBY are in their second year when Ozpin presents them with a dangerous hunting mission, which they accept. How will this affect them? AU, established Freezerburn, slowburn Ladybug. RWBY-centric.
1. Chapter 1: Pride

_'Italicized text is indicative of character thoughts.'_

"Quotes indicate regular dialogue."

 **Bolded text is an A/N.**

 **All rights regarding RWBY belong to Rooster Teeth.**

* * *

 **Fusion**

 **Chapter 1-Pride**

* * *

Team RWBY had been enjoying a fruitful time at Beacon.

Since Cinder's attack at the Vytal Festival, RWBY had garnered increased fame and respect amongst their peers, due to their heroic efforts in repelling the Atlesian robots hacked by Cinder as well as the Grimm summoned by the panic during her attack. Furthermore, their prowess in combat was near unmatched through Beacon, with only their comrades in the second year of JNPR and CFVY of the fourth year able to consistently challenge them. Their insistence upon taking the most difficult field missions available, a habit unwittingly created by Ozpin himself from the events of Mountain Glenn, honed their skills to a razor's edge; resulting in RWBY acting as four separate manifestations of the same entity during combat - perfectly complementing the others in a harmonious quartet of steel and dust. Individually their skills were extraordinary: as four, lethal.

The ability to intuitively know how someone will react to your actions is not engendered through simple exercise - it requires countless hours of drills and near-perfect knowledge of the person's character, on a physical, mental and emotional level.

Team RWBY had become one of the most successful teams at Beacon, with exceptional fighting skills and deep loyalty to their teammates not found in other teams, loyalty formed through bonds forged in and out of combat.

This led to them sitting in Ozpin's office early on one Friday morning.

…..

"Ladies, do you know why I have assembled you here today?"

Ozpin's piercing gaze gave nothing away as he inspected the four young women standing before him. To be fair, they couldn't know: none of the normal reasons to be summoned to the headmaster's office were applicable to them - their grades were excellent, even Yang's after having Weiss become her personal tutor, they certainly hadn't misbehaved and their combat rankings were prodigious, the four in the top ten of _all_ Beacon students. Their collective silence and slight expressions of confusion were answer enough for Ozpin.

"What do the four of you know about Goliaths?"

Three expressions of confusion magnified further, whilst one cleared up significantly.

"Ruby, please tell me the extent of your knowledge."

"Doctor Oobleck introduced me to them during our mission to Mountain Glenn. A small herd of them were outside the ruins of the city. He explained to me how Grimm of that age and size can have limited forms of intelligence, mostly related to survival instincts. Beyond that, I only know of their physical characteristics, very similar to elephants' with armoured plating covering the majority of their bodies."

"Very good. Now, Weiss, Blake and Yang, Goliaths are not ordinarily studied until the fourth year, so you are not expected to have knowledge of them at this point in time. I can, however, tell you that ordinarily Goliaths are beyond the capabilities of most hunter teams to kill. Specialised teams, those with semblances or weapons that specifically address Goliaths' weaknesses are called in when a herd of Goliaths become a threat."

At this, Ozpin broke off suddenly, before standing abruptly and walked to the windows of his office, beckoning the four to join him.

"There is such a beast right now, in the Emerald Forest."

Various notes of surprise and fear were emitted by the four simultaneously, before launching a barrage of questions towards the headmaster.

"What will we do?"

"Professor, why is this relevant to us?"

"How do you intend to deal with it?"

"And when can I punch it?"

As one, the RWB of RWBY glared at Yang for not taking the situation seriously, before being surprised by Ozpin.

"Incidentally, quite soon, Yang. On Monday, should you accept."

Blinking rapidly, the other three spun back to Ozpin, silently demanding further explanation - one he was reluctant to give.

"The specialised hunter teams I referred to earlier have two duties. One is as mentioned, whilst the other is as advance scouts. Since Cinder has gone into hiding, they have all been deployed for information gathering, leaving none able to deal with this monster rapidly approaching our school. No teachers are able to put aside the time necessary to deal with them, either. Hence, I must send the most combat-able team: you four."

Shock, pride and finally grim understanding flitted across the four students' faces as they understood the full implications of the information Ozpin was providing them.

"It is borderline criminal to send a team of students to kill a Goliath, even if there is only one, but unfortunately needs must when the devil drives. I am asking you four to take this mission to kill the Goliath, starting Monday. Your weekend will be devoted to study of this creature, in which Professors Goodwitch and Port will assist you. You will have one week."

At this grim declaration, Ruby glanced at her teammates.

Confidence in her to make the correct decision was directed back at her.

But what was that decision?

On the one hand, success on this mission would, undoubtedly, lead to increased opportunities in their Huntress careers as their repute increases from killing these Grimm in their _second_ year of study.

On the other hand, there was a reason that these Grimm were kept as targets of an elite group of Hunters: they were far more dangerous than your average Beowolf. Did team RWBY have the slightest chance of even injuring one of these monsters?

Ultimately, perhaps it was the incredible success they had had over their time at Beacon that drove Ruby to accept. Her belief in her team was absolute.

"We accept."

At this, the barest hint of a smile appeared on Ozpin's face as they left the Headmaster's quarters.

She had no idea the effects this decision would have on team RWBY's future.

* * *

 **Hi everyone, Commando here.**

 **First off, this is an AU after V3E5, set approximately 6 months after the Vytal Festival. Team RWBY are in their second year.**

 **Cinder has executed her plans for the Vytal Festival, consisting of hacking the Atlesian military, such as the AK-200s and attacking the stadium with them. She was defeated and has gone into hiding, along with leaders of the WF.**

 **No Maidens in this story.**

 **As for updates, I won't put a specific date, but I intend to update every fortnight or so.**

 **Reviews of all kinds are appreciated.**

 **EDIT (01/03): Someone PM'd that a scene was very similar to one in Remnant's Reclaimer, so I removed it.**


	2. Chapter 2: Fall

**For those of you who have already favorited or followed (many thanks to you all), a portion of the first chapter has been transferred to this one, so some of the beginning you will recognise.**

 **Otherwise, here's Chapter 2.**

' _Italicized text is indicative of character thoughts.'_

"Quotes indicate regular dialogue."

 **Bolded text is an A/N.**

 **All rights regarding RWBY belong to Rooster Teeth.**

* * *

 **Fusion**

 **Chapter 2-Fall**

* * *

The roar of the Bullhead engines permeated the air as Ruby mentally completed her pre-mission ritual.

" _15 cross, regular and armour-piercing magazines, 5 bullets each. Check."_

" _Crescent Rose? Check, obviously. Sweetheart weighs a damn ton on my back."_

" _Objectives - kill the Goliaths and any support. One week to do it….. probably a good idea to run through their characteristics again. After all the progress of the last year, I'm sure we're all on the same page, but it doesn't hurt to make sure."_

"WBY, listen up. I want you all to list me a characteristic of a Goliath."

Various protestations and grumbles met Ruby's announcement, the loudest naturally coming from Yang.

"Really, Ruby? Port and Goodwitch drilled them so far into my head I can still hear the rattling."

Weiss immediately admonished her girlfriend, telling her in no uncertain terms that she will take this seriously or be punished by her.

Speaking of progress.

" _Those two have come a very long way since the start of the year. Weiss was always at Yang's throat over her unbearable puns and incessant teasing. Over time, though, Weiss gradually warmed to Yang. It was… different watching Yang actually take it seriously after Weiss sacrificed herself in their doubles match at the Vytal Tournament."_

Ruby still remembered that particular sister talk the night after.

…

"Rubbles, got a minute? We haven't had a sister talk in a while."

"Yeah, sure Yang. Lemme just finish this combat strategy paper."

Dropping her pen on the table soon thereafter, Ruby spun in her chair and looked at her sister.

"So, what's up?"

"In private. Come with me."

Frowning slightly, Ruby followed Yang outside to Beacon's gardens, whereupon on arriving she began to speak before Yang interrupted.

"What d'ya think of the Ice Queen, Rubbles?"

"I…. think that she's a great partner and once you get past her frosty exterior a warm, caring person inside. Why? Also, don't call her Ice Queen."

"When I first came here that September, we didn't get off to that great a start, as you know. But, when we came to be on the same team, her reactions to my teasing were such that I couldn't resist continuing, at risk of my physical health at times…

But gradually I did come to see her as you described. And now, after her stunt yesterday… I feel like I have a crush on her. And I don't know what to do about it, if she even swings that way, if after my teasing she'll accept me… I couldn't sleep last night just thinking about it. What should I do?"

Removing her jaw from the floor, Ruby attempted to speak, failed and tried again repeatedly.

"Yang, I don't know why you want my advice, I've never even dated or anything. But, here it is, for what it's worth. Figure out if its genuine feelings or just a temporary appreciation for her actions yesterday. If the former, do not under any circumstances approach this like you normally would. I've seen you flirt before and Weiss would impale your blond head on Myrtenaster if you tried it. Go slowly. Show that you care for her and not her status, as well. Don't forget what happened with Neptune. I spent days comforting her after Neptune showed his true colours."

And to her credit, Yang did just that. She mostly laid off the teasing and showed Weiss her fire could be controlled. That her semblance could comfort. Using small, appreciative gestures, touches and glances to convey her feelings over a time period of _months_.

Weiss appreciated that Yang was willing to go slowly, as her brashness was what originally turned her off. In turn, Weiss learned to be more patient and caring with her teammates, gradually losing her Ice Queen moniker as she mellowed. Weiss had grown up in a harsh, decidedly unfriendly environment where nothing but punishments and negative enforcements occurred, so upon being exposed to friendship and love, her attitudes changed considerably. Certainly, she did still have her difficult moments, but on the whole she was much more friendly than she was during her arrival at Beacon.

Yang finally asked her out after the Vytal Tournament battle was over and Cinder defeated.

Weiss accepted.

…

"Alright, fine Princess. Ruby, their armour is very thick: only specially made, armour-piercing rounds of the .50 calibre or larger are able to pierce the hide of a Goliath. Of course, the only places where armour is not present are the eyes and the knee joints, because they like being difficult."

Ruby nodded at Blake to continue.

"The tusks of a Goliath have a unique property: they will completely bypass any Aura they come into contact with. Also, a Goliath's first instinct in combat is to gore any enemies in front of it. Despite their mass, their straight-line speed is immense. Don't stand in front of them when you attack them." Came Blake's slightly sarcastic response.

"Weiss?"

"The call of a Goliath will attract any Grimm in its radius. Depending on their size, this range can extend up to 10 km in all directions from it. Hence, we're going to try and eliminate all the Grimm nests in the area, provided by Ozpin, before engaging the Goliaths so as to prevent the Goliath from summoning them to its aid."

"Back to you, Yang. How do you kill them?"

Yang pouted at her sister before complaining, "Why me? Let Blake or Weiss respond."

"Not worried about them, sis. Have you seen their grades? They probably know more than the professors. Besides, you like killing Grimm. Should be easy for you."

Immaturely sticking her tongue out at Ruby, causing Weiss to sigh exasperatedly, Yang replied.

"Immobilisation is difficult - their strength can break through most shackles we can place on it, such as glyphs or traps. It's also hard to amputate the limbs themselves. Even at the joints where armour is less thick, the circumference of the legs is such that cutting through the leg is close to impossible - I could probably break through one if I got a boost from Princess, though.

The only way to kill a Goliath cleanly is to impale its brain. That armour isn't there for show, however. To do this, the object must either get through that armour or enter through the Goliath's eye. Both aren't exactly easy, with the former being borderline impossible and the eye being a truly tiny target to aim for - like Weissicle!"

Ignoring Weiss' death glare and utterings of various combinations of ice dust, Myrtenaster and Yang, she continued.

"The other method is blood loss - to tire the Grimm through numerous small injuries that it cannot sustain and eventually drain its life force. This method is harder than the other as it takes several hours for a Goliath to lose all of its blood. One needs to then deal with the various other Grimm it is summoning constantly as it roars as well as an injured, angry Goliath - and let me tell you, _sis,_ I ain't going to be the one distracting it if we get a berserking Goliath on our hands."

"See Yang, you can do well academically. Just need Weiss to 'motivate' you." Ruby responds, smirking at her suddenly tomato-faced sister and partner.

Yang was about to reply scathingly when the pilot's voice cut through their communications equipment.

"5 minutes to exit, ladies. Begin any final preparations."

…

Crescent Rose sang through the air as it rent the final Beowulf in the nest, beheading it with ruthless precision

It had been an exhausting day.

Ozpin's maps had indicated a monstrous amount of Grimm in the area, and despite clearing out several Beowulf, two Ursai, a Boarbatusk and a King Taijitu nest there were still many more encampments in the area to clear before being able to safely engage the Goliaths.

"Alright girls, pack it in. Next appropriate site we find, we'll set up overnight camp."

Grunts of affirmation met Ruby's declaration, as Weiss, Blake and Yang were well past the point of exhaustion and could hardly spare energy to even reply.

Soon, they happened upon a small clearing with a river conveniently located nearby.

"Yang, you're on fire and cooking. Blake, you can get the wood and secure a fifty metre area as you have the best night senses here. Me and Weiss will set up tents after our meal."

"Weiss and I" came the tired correction from the person in question, lacking its usual sharp tone.

Nevertheless, wood was found, a fire started and food rationed out.

"Dust, I'm tired. Ember Celica haven't felt this heavy in _years_."

"Hush, firecracker. You're meant to be warming me, not talking."

Giggling, Yang nuzzled the sleepy heiress in her arms, placing a light kiss on her crown.

Despite the surroundings, it was a pleasant meal: a crackling fire accompanying the camaraderie between close friends. Comfortable trees were found to lean against and doze in front of the flames as conversation gradually died down. As the four readied for bed, Weiss placed a perimeter of motion-sensing glyphs around the campsite, to ensure there were no surprises in the middle of the night. Ruby and Weiss began to unpack the tents.

Only to discover that there were only two tents as opposed to the requisite four.

All turned to glare accusingly at the one who packed the tents.

"Really Yang? You probably did it deliberately, too, so you can cuddle Weiss." Ruby pointedly accused her sister.

"I hate to reward Yang's behaviour, but I don't want to listen to her complaining to me that she's been separated from Weiss by Ruby, so I vote just let her have this battle." Blake opined, staring disappointedly at Yang the entire time.

Naturally, Yang completely ignored her stare.

"Fine. Me and Blake in one tent whilst Yang and Weiss are in the other. So help me God, if I hear you two kissing I will not hesitate to come over there and kick Yang out and have her sleep in a tree."

Yang proceeded to do a victory dance before throwing Weiss over her shoulder and carrying her into their shared tent, leaving Ruby and Blake to commiserate over their partners.

And belatedly realise that a one-person tent was not in fact meant to fit two people. Elbows and knees clashed together painfully as the pair squirmed around, trying to get comfortable. Tent fabric stretched as bodies pushed against it, before snapping back as the offending limb was removed.

"This is silly. I can't even breathe, the tents pushing against my chest." Ruby moaned to Blake, over her back.

"I didn't want to listen to Yang complain so I got Ruby instead. Joy." Blake muttered back sarcastically.

Five more minutes passed of extreme discomfort before Blake finally snapped.

"Ruby, this is ridiculous. Turn over, we'll have more space that way."

"A- are you sure Blake? I don't want y-you to be uncomfortable, especially with how you dislike people in your personal space." Ruby nervously stuttered back.

"It's fine Ruby. We'll both be more comfortable this way."

So saying, Blake reached over and spun Ruby around before locking her arms around Ruby's waist, oblivious to the effect this had on Ruby.

" _Bl-Blake is so close to me!? And warm! And soft! What do I doooo? Where should I put my arms? On hers? At my sides? Ahhh!"_

Ruby began to sweat from her concerns and her proximity to Blake, causing Blake to question if she was feeling fine.

"N-no Blake, I'm fine. It's just a little warm, but it feels nice."

Both blushed at that statement, with neither realising the effect on the other.

…

Three days passed in this manner before Weiss finally broke.

"Ruby. It'll take us all week to even clear out the area of Grimm that we know about. That's not counting the one's that aren't marked or ones that will be in range of the Goliath as it moves. Besides which, we're burning through combat supplies and energy as we exterminate the nests. At this rate, I won't have any Dust and you three won't have any ammunition at the end of the week, and we'll be exhausted to boot from a week of slaughter.

I suggest we move up the schedule and take the Goliath out now. We drop in as four and take him out now, and deal with any additional Grimm afterwards."

Halting immediately, Ruby turned to lambast Weiss before reconsidering her argument. Attacking the Grimm tired would be a horrible idea and furthermore with no ammunition their combat potential would be greatly diminished. Dangerous as it was, it could well be easier than the original plan to kill all the Grimm they were aware of.

"Weiss, I understand your points, but its much more dangerous. I'll only approve if all of us agree."

Despite the added danger, though, RWBY had implicit trust and faith in each other to be able to handle the situation.

"Alright, we rest here for the night. At first light, we move out tomorrow for the Goliath. We cleared out the areas North through South-east of the Goliath's location, so expect Grimm to first come from areas outside this region. Team RWBY, tomorrow, we fight. And we will succeed."

"Banzai!"

…

Team RWBY sat hidden among the leaves of the fir trees, the Goliath shaking the ground below.

"Mic check: 1,2,3."

"1,2,3" came back through her earpiece from WBY.

"On my mark… Go!"

Ruby activated her Semblance, hurtling through the air at the towering Goliath in milliseconds. Burning through cross rounds, she pirouetted mid-air, scythe blurring as she violently drove the tail of Crescent Rose towards the Goliath's stationary eye. Despite Ruby's speed, the Goliath twisted its head, causing Crescent Rose to bounce harmlessly off the thick armour. Ruby fired cross rounds at its head as she desperately tried to move away from the lethal tusks accelerating towards her, intent on goring her. Her Semblance activated as she flew through the air, landing at its flank on the ground.

" _I missed the eye. Now that its alert, I won't be able to hit that small a target again. Plan B, I guess._ _"_

"Weiss, Plan B! I missed!"

As the black gravity glyph spun into existence behind her, humming with power, Yang blasted through the air as the glyph repelled her into the path of the right foreleg of the Goliath. Despite Yang's gravity- and Weiss-assisted descent, her Aura-enhanced impact hardly dented the foreleg of the Goliath. Yang's momentum dropped instantly as she came to a halt, sliding down the leg of the Goliath even as it moved through the air. As Yang was dazed, Blake had to use Gambol Shroud to tear her off the leg before her imminent demise.

The Goliath glared at the insects surrounding it before releasing an earth-shattering roar, calling Grimm to its aid.

 _"Welp, that didn't work either. Looks like we're doing this one the hard way."_

The Goliath began rampaging, hurtling straight for Ruby as the first Grimm the calls had summoned entered the clearing, a pack of Beowolves.

"Yang, Weiss, take those Beowolves and any other Grimm that show up! I'll lead the Goliath to where Blake and I will kill it! We'll be back shortly!"

So saying, Ruby taunted the Goliath by appearing in front of it before zipping away, towards the cliffs towering above the engagement area.

"Blake, release them on my call. Be ready in about 5 minutes."

Ruby proceeded to run away from the roaring Goliath, earth shaking as it pounded after her with speed surprising for its size. Idly, Ruby noted that every single Grimm in the area would have heard by now and would be in attendance shortly.

Leading a roaring Goliath on a wild goose chase was no easy feat. Several times Ruby had to fire indiscriminately at it, wasting ammunition to keep its attention focused on her. One misstep, a slight trip and she would be impaled or trampled. The uneven ground seemed designed to throw random obstacles in her way - an uprooted tree here, a pile of stones there. Moving around the impediments cost her precious seconds as the Goliath ran through them, crushing them under its weight.

Ruby walked a fine line, playing a game of inches with her life as the stakes.

Her inner monologue distracted her and almost caused her to miss the prepared area.

She almost screamed through her earpiece at Blake, who promptly triggered the trap they had set earlier prior to engaging in case of the worst-case scenario.

Red Dust kindly provided by Weiss exploded, creating a rock fall as the already unstable cliff face was sundered by the explosive force of crystalline Dust. Falling from some fifty metres, the massive rocks accelerated downwards before smashing into the Goliath's back with insane amounts of force. No amount of armour could stop a one-ton rock falling from that height and quite agreeably the Goliath's back snapped under the pressure, dropping it as it was buried under tons of rock.

" _Alright, the Goliath is down. Need to get back to Weiss and Yang and then deal with every Grimm in the forest. No biggie."_

Much easier said than done, as it were.

…

Weiss and Yang, meanwhile, were getting swarmed by Grimm monsters.

The initial Beowulf pack had perished quickly, but as more and blood was shed so too were more Grimm attracted to the coppery scent.

Currently, two packs of Ursai, a pack of Beowolves and Creeps and a King Taijitu were in the clearing, with distant howls indicating yet more were on the way.

Ruby's voice crackled through their earpieces.

"The Goliath is dead. What's it like on your end?"

Not stopping as she brutally uppercut an Ursa before shooting its legs out and snapping the neck, Yang hastily replied.

"Not good, sis. We're getting swamped by Grimm and Princess and I can't hold 'em back for much longer. Get back here, ASAP."

She immediately spun around, dumping shells into the Beowulf attacking her rear before planting her fist through its skull, first tendrils of heat beginning to emanate from her as her Semblance began charging.

Out of the corner of her eye, a Creep broke through the ice wall Weiss was using as cover. Instantaneously, she sprinted for it whilst firing in hopes of distracting it from Weiss, currently occupied with other enemies.

Weiss' glyphs blazed into life and disappeared just as quickly as she floated around the battlefield like a butterfly.

She stung much harder than a bee, however.

Myrtenaster danced with deadly grace as it promised death for those impaled on it. Bolts of lightning and lances of ice emanated from her as she drove the Grimm away. To be in close range of her was to sign your own death warrant.

The glow of yellow Dust shone from her, accelerating her movements further. Myrtenaster left afterimages as it precisely thrust through Grimm, blood pooling beneath her as it spurted from the carcasses around her. Shrieks pierced the air as Grimm were electrocuted alive whilst others were frozen solid in grotesque parodies of battle, locked in their prisons with jaws opening and claws reaching.

Glyphs disrupted the enemy hordes, splitting them or cutting them off entirely as Grimm were crushed against walls made of glyphs by their overzealous comrades behind them. Using them as springboards to navigate the carnage, Weiss flew through the air, never allowing Grimm a free shot at her. Every scratch earned vicious retribution as a slit throat or impaled limb.

Her dance of death was interrupted by a thud.

Turning abruptly, she was met with a grinning Yang as a large Creep dissolved behind her.

"Princess, maybe you shouldn't let Grimm… _creep_ up on ya! Eh?"

Rolling her eyes, she responded monotonously, "Cover my back, Yang" and ignored the mumbled "You're no fun today" before the crack of Ember Celica drew her attention back to the problem at hand.

Although she wasn't sure which would kill her faster: Grimm, or Yang's _truly_ awful puns.

…

The two stood back to back against the encroaching horde, fire and ice combining in a lethal duet for their opponents.

The battlefield was a wasteland of death, any semblance of life having been long since erased due to combat. Dust rose from the ground as Grimm stamped on it, obscuring their vision. Large swathes of land had been frozen or set on fire, setting up convenient kill zones. Any Grimm venturing onto the ice lost their footing, making them easy targets, whilst the fires raging set up alleys for Yang to shoot through. Incidentally, a Grimm set on fire went insane as it burned, attacking anything in range of its claws - a useful benefit.

There was a pair missing, however.

"Rubes, where are ya? You said you'd be here a while ago - what gives?"

"Ran into a Deathstalker that was too big for its own shoes. We cut him down to size but it took a little bit longer than expected. In other news, behind you."

Spinning, Yang noticed Ruby and Blake cutting their way towards them, Grimm dissolving with every arc of Crescent Rose or volley from Gambol Shroud.

"Listen up, girls. Diamond shape in the centre. I take North, Blake's on East, Yang takes West and Weiss stays south."

"Roger that."

"Understood."

"Got it, sis."

The diamond was immediately formed and RWBY readied their weapons as the Grimm advanced.

Despite the numbers arrayed against them, they held on admirably, not giving an inch of the ground they owned. Nothing was let through the perimeter as countless Grimm threw their lives away attacking the four.

In short, everything was going swimmingly until the Goliath Patriarch showed up.

…

The first notice they had of it was when it stampeded into the clearing, crushing Grimm underfoot as it charged towards them.

"SCATTER, NOW!"

The arrival of the Goliath completely destroyed any formation they had obtained, as the four immediately sprang from the path of the trumpeting giant. They were forced into suboptimal conditions, defending from all directions as they landed alone in separate sections of the swarm of Grimm.

It was an unmitigated disaster of the highest order.

Retreating under the siege of Grimm, the four clawed their way through the horde of Grimm, sustaining injuries in the process before managing to regroup on the outskirts of battle.

Ruby was currently distracting it whilst WBY dealt with the Grimm around them.

" _How the hell do we deal with this? We can't kill it like the other, it's alert and furthermore we have no traps prepared. And how did an entire Goliath escape the scouting parties? Ozpin should hire better ones…_

 _Distracting it isn't terribly hard, but killing it is an altogether different matter. There's no space to let Yang rush it and it won't stay still for its eyes to be an easy target._

 _I wonder how many crystals Weiss has. She's used a lot, but if she has enough then… this is certifiably insane, but so was the plan to kill that Nevermore, so here goes."_

"Weiss, how many dust crystals are you carrying right now?"

Surprised, Weiss though for a minute before replying that her current stock was approximately sixty crystals, ranging between Burn, Ice, Shock and Earth dust.

" _That might just be enough… "_

"I need all of them."

Weiss indignant reply was cut short by Ruby.

"It will be how we're going to kill that monster. Put them all in a bag. Listen up, everyone! Here's the plan… "

…

The four member of RWBY were arranged around the Goliath. Blake and Yang were on crowd control, herding it to where Weiss and Ruby lay in wait.

The distant thumps alerted them to the incoming behemoth.

"Weiss, I need that thing looking directly at me."

"Yes Ruby, I'm aware. I was listening just now, you know."

Their argument was cut short by the appearance of the Goliath. It rent the air with howls, kicking Blake away as it rushed towards the White Rose pair. Focusing on the objective and not their injured teammate, Weiss launched herself towards the Goliath whilst shooting it in the face with ice lances to centre it on her.

" _Oum, I hope Ruby knows what she's doing… "_

The Goliath roared in her face, powerful enough to shave slivers off her Aura. The Goliath raised its head, jaws opening in an attempt to swallow Weiss whole.

Black glyphs sprang into existence besides her, forcefully repelling her sideways as the tusks glanced her sides, opening a shallow but long cut.

Confused, the Goliath noticed what was right behind Weiss, some sort of ball. Dismissing it as irrelevant, it moved to swallow it.

Ruby cheered internally, watching the Goliath's actions through the magnification of her scope.

" _Time this right. You got one shot."_

Lining up the shot, Ruby accounted for the drop of the bullet as it cut through the air, incrementally raising Crescent Rose as she watched it slowly enter the Goliath's throat.

She pulled the trigger.

The hammer dropped, releasing the firing pin inside Crescent Rose. It sprung forwards, striking the cartridge and igniting the Dust propellant inside. The rifle bucked as the bullet fired, spinning through the air from the grooves cut inside the barrel of Crescent Rose.

It travelled the distance in just under a second, impacting the target with ruthless accuracy. It punched through the cloth effortlessly before shattering the Dust crystals held within, releasing their destructive power instantaneously.

A resounding crack rent the battlefield as the Dust was triggered. Plumes of fire exploded from the remnants of the Goliath's neck as pillars of earth extended downwards, seeking the ground. Lightning crackled, sizzling through the air whilst ice shards expanded radially.

It was spectacular, but by no means were RWBY safe yet.

Blake had been sent flying by the Goliath, impacting on a tree as she flew. Her Aura held, but barely. Her combat effectiveness had decreased to virtually nil.

The others had all suffered various scratches and wounds from their extended engagement. Even with applications of green Dust, the fixes would be temporary.

And there were still hundreds of merciless Grimm watching, waiting, anticipating the moment their jaws would sink into human flesh.

...

Team RWBY was in the centre of an ocean of blood.

The encounter had grown into a full-blown slaughterhouse. It was so vicious that _baby_ Grimm had begun showing up. Much less dangerous than their full-sized counterparts, but still a nuisance to deal with. Bullets had long since run out, leaving Weiss in the air to deal with the flock of Nevermores that had shown up. Their feathers rained from the sky, occasionally piercing a random Grimm but far more often interrupting a crucial attack or forcing a dodge.

Ruby and Yang were on the ground, exhausted muscles barely able to hold their weapons up as they fought the Grimm. Yang's semblance had flared fully, exhausted itself and then flared _again_ before dying once more.

Arms and legs moved sluggishly. Where one punch would have killed a Beowulf, now it took three. Ursai were even worse.

She was currently squaring off against an Ursa Major, and losing badly.

It rushed her, and she was barely able to dodge as it went by. Enraged, it turned and began swiping erratically at Yang, leaving many openings that she was simply unable to exploit due to exhaustion. After much running, she finally tripped it as it passed, swinging a fist down onto the back of the head and snapping the spine. Groaning, she felt a prick on her calf.

There was a baby Ursa clawing it, managing to prick her skin with the tiny claws. Rolling her eyes, she kicked it, hearing a squeal as it flew through the air and was subsequently crushed as it landed. Shrugging absently, she turned her focus to the next enemy.

…

Blake was in particular danger.

She definitely had the worst injuries, but to add to her difficulties a pair of Nightwatchers had decided that she was a prime target.

Nightwatchers were extremely rare Grimm that hunted exclusively in pairs, actively trying to avoid other Grimm as they may interrupt their hunts. They only had armour on the shoulders and face, preferring the extra mobility provided from a free body. It was a widely accepted tenet that if only one was found, to check your back: the other could frequently be found there, ready to kill you. They hunted from the shadows; silent killers.

The Nightwatchers would not attack the RWY of RWBY, there were far too many Grimm there to make it attractive. Blake, on the other hand, was alone and without any enemies.

A prime target.

Currently, Blake had dealt with one of them with a judicious use of her semblance to confuse it before Gambol Shroud pierced its back, ending it in a spray of red. This enraged the other as its hunting partner was killed, causing it to ruthlessly attack her with swipes and stabs of its claws. It was all Blake could do to keep it with it, desperately swinging sheathe and katana in a frenzied defence that would nevertheless soon fall.

Desperately, Blake dropped her defence entirely, moving inside the range of the claws. They extended around her, locking her in a repulsive embrace with the Grimm in question before Gambol Shroud cut through the air as she beheaded it.

The baby Nightwatcher was unnoticed as it snuck up on her before launching a futile attack.

" _What? A third? And a baby to boot? Does that mean Nightstalker pairs… reproduce?"_

Shaking her head to clear it of that repulsive thought, she cleanly stabbed her katana through the Grimm and sank to her knees against a nearby tree.

She passed out as a drop of blood rolled down her leg.

…

Weiss had whittled the flock of Nevermores down to just two, a baby and a fairly large adult. Not nearly as big as the one at initiation, but still decently sized.

The younger one was no threat to her, its claws were blunt and the feathers could hardly fly, not at all like the artillery Giant Nevermores could produce.

Weiss therefore focused on the elder, conserving her glyphs as her Aura began to run low from the extended stress put on it by overusing glyphs.

Spotting her chance as the Nevermore swooped in to knock her off her platform, she spun Myrtenaster's Dust chamber to the final one still with any dust left - ice. As her favoured dust, she always kept more of it on her than the others and in truth the ice Dust container had a larger capacity than the others.

" _That probably needed changing, if fights like these are any indication."_

Dismissing the thought, Weiss narrowed her eyes, timing it to perfection. One final ice shard flew from her rapier's tip and speared right through the eye of the Nevermore. It squawked loudly as it was blinded before being silenced permanently as Myrtenaster extended from its throat. Removing her blade and kicking it off her glyph, Weiss tugged a small stray feather from her arm and thrust through the final Nevermore. Groaning in exhaustion, she dismissed her glyph, summoning new ones as she travelled towards the ground.

She saw Ruby cut down a few final Beowolves, including a baby Beowulf that was biting her, finally killing the last of the Grimm.

It was finally over.

The three didn't even bother trying to contact Beacon to call in their mission, they didn't consider eating, RWY just found where Blake was sleeping slightly fitfully and collapsed around her. Blood squelched as they flopped down into the soil before descending into the clutches of Morpheus.

Terror awaited the four.

* * *

 **I really hate when authors do cliffhangers, but from this side it's oh so much fun~.**

 **Nightwatchers are an OC Grimm from Burning Peace. Many thanks to him for letting me use them.**

 **Please review, and if you enjoyed a follow or favourite is much appreciated.**

 **Commando.**


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